In true color vision animals discriminate between light wavelengths, regardless of intensity, using at least two photoreceptors with different spectral sensitivity peaks. Heliconius butterflies have duplicate UV opsin genes, which encode ultraviolet and violet photoreceptors, respectively. In H. erato, only females express the ultraviolet photoreceptor, suggesting females (but not males) can discriminate between UV wavelengths. We tested the ability of H. erato, and two species lacking the violet receptor, H. melpomene and Eueides isabella, to...

Divergence is often ephemeral, and populations that diverge in response to regional topographic and climatic factors may not remain reproductively isolated when they come into secondary contact. We investigated the geographic structure and evolutionary history of population divergence within Sceloporus occidentalis (Western Fence Lizards), a habitat generalist with a broad distribution that spans the major biogeographic regions of Western North America. We used double digest RAD sequencing to infer population structure, phylogeny, and demography. Population...

Primates are noted for their varied and complex pelage and bare skin coloration but the significance of this diverse coloration remains opaque. Using new updated information, novel scoring of coat and skin coloration, and controlling for shared ancestry, we reexamined and extended findings from previous studies across the whole order and the five major clades within it. Across primates we found (i) direct and indirect evidence for pelage coloration being driven by protective coloration strategies...

Globally, one-quarter of shark and ray species is threatened with extinction due to overfishing. Effective conservation and management can facilitate population recoveries; however, these efforts depend on robust data on movement patterns and stock structure, which are lacking for many threatened species, including the Critically Endangered soupfin shark (Galeorhinus galeus), a circumglobal coastal-pelagic species. Using passive acoustic telemetry, we continuously tracked 34 mature female soupfin sharks, surgically implanted with coded acoustic transmitters, for seven years...

Contaminant Exposure Models (CEMs) were developed to predict population-level tissue contaminant concentrations in fishes by pairing sediment-bound contaminant concentrations (DDTs, PCBs) and fine-scale acoustic telemetry data from a habitat- associated species (Vermilion Rockfish, Sebastes miniatus), nomadic flatfish species (Hornyhead Turbot, Pleuronichthys verticalis), and nomadic benthic/midwater schooling species (White Croaker, Genyonemus lineatus) tagged near wastewater outfalls in southern California. Model results were compared to contaminant concentrations in tissue samples. The CEMs developed require further refinement before...